The meaning of success is a personal definition

A goal that almost everyone shares is succeed. But what does that mean? In some cultures, success has a very definite meaning. They have set responsibilities for most members of the society and as long as an individual fulfills those responsibilities, he is considered successful. However, in the US, success has many different meanings, and those meanings have changed significantly over the years.

Even Webster’s Dictionary has significantly changed the definition of success over the years. In 1806, the term success was defined as “…being generous, prosperous, healthy, and kind.” Today, the definition reads “the achievement of wealth, fame, and rank.” Those are quite different concepts, but they are very reflective of how American society has developed, for better or worse.

The most interesting change in the definition of success is found in the first few words. 200 years ago, the definition had to do with who and what a person was like…”be“prosperous, generous and kind. Now, the focus is on what you have…”the satisfaction of”. The distinction is important, and probably an indication of how far we have strayed from focusing on our own value of material possessions.

The state of large companies in the US shows this change in many of their deals. The ethically corroded business environment that allows MLMs, scammers, and even recommend outsourcing for personal gain is the same one that attacks us with propaganda about going into debt to buy more and more stuff. It’s the same one that played the leading role in the current economic disaster, and it’s the same one that is relegating millions of Americans to a paycheck life in order to survive. According to media portrayals and marketing messages, success no longer has anything to do with who you are, but is based solely on what you have.

Although Webster’s definition reflects society in general, for individuals success it can still have many different meanings. For some, depositing large sums of money is a sign of success. For others, being able to do what they want, when they want, is the goal. Still others bank their success on how they affect other people and the world at large. And of course, there are many who will remain in the debt cycle because their definition of success is based on what they have right now.

One of the benefits of today’s economic chaos is that more and more Americans are taking a hard look at their lives and trying to define what is In fact important. The key is to define success for yourself and make the changes necessary to live that life. Don’t be fooled by the hype… what you want out of life is much more important than what big companies and banks tell you to want. And you will find much more satisfaction in taking control of every area of ​​your own life.